The Crucible

Malvern Young Players

****

Witchcraft, incantations, naked dancing
in the woods, cauldrons with living creatures in, allegations,
counter-allegations, excommunication and executions – the scandal of the
Salem witchcraft trials are the focus of the best-known play by
America’s greatest playwright of the Twentieth Century, Arthur Miller.

In a highly religious society, the teenagers
experimenting and rebelling in the woods provoke one of the most
heart-wrenching miscarriages of justice.

The profound insecurities of the local preacher,
the Reverend Paris, and the pig-headed pride of the Deputy Governor,
Thomas Danforth, result in the well-meaning ‘expert’ in matters of the
occult, the Reverend Hale, finding that events are taken out of his
hands: he watches as innocent citizens have their reputations blackened
and their lives destroyed by the manipulative teenager Abigail and her
associates.

Even when she runs away in Act Four, still the
machinery of injustice grinds on and further executions take place.

Miller’s fascination with these historical events
was partly provoked by the McCarthy trials in the USA in the 1950s. The
play has much contemporary relevance today as well, and the revival by
the Malvern Young Players is full of poignancy and dramatic impact.

The young amateur cast provide some strong
performances in the key roles. Charlotte Myerson (Abigail), Toby
Burchell (John Proctor) and Emily Henry (Elizabeth Proctor) are at the
core of this story. The scene in the last act between John and Elizabeth
was very moving and convincing, not overplayed but highly charged.
Abigail’s performance in Act 3, when the young girls start ‘manifesting’
to turn the direction of the scene and draw Mary Warren away from
Proctor, was very effectively directed and performed.

Mary Warren makes a very promising debut with the
company: the clarity of her diction was lost at times but she sustained
her role in the middle of the play well.

Jacob Buckley (Reverend Hale) is an experienced
and strong presence; he plays his developing and increasingly tortured
character with conviction and clear delivery.

Likewise, Ben Mowbray is a strong and assured
performer in the key role of Danforth in the second half of the play.

The bare black staging with a few items of
furniture adequately throws the focus on the acting and the story.

The inclusion of the missing scene at the
beginning of Act Three was new to me and added an interesting twist,
though I can understand why Miller omitted it from the final version of
the play.

Once again the combination of promising young
amateur players and a professional director and stage team is a winning
formula. This is brilliant for emerging talent and an evening of almost
completely gripping tension. To 19-08-17.

Timothy Crow

16-08-17

There is no admission charge for this production,
instead, there will be a collection after each performance in support of
future Malvern Theatres projects.